Transcript Ethical styles

Which is worse?
a. hurting someone's feelings by telling the truth
b. b. telling a lie and protecting their feelings
Which is the worse mistake?
• A. to make exceptions too freely
• B. to apply rules too rigidly
Which is it worse to be
• A. unmerciful
• B. unfair
Which is worse?
• A. stealing something valuable from
someone for no good reason
• B. breaking a promise to a friend for no
good reason
Which is it better to be
• A. just and fair
• B. sympathetic and feeling
Which is worse?
• A. not helping someone in trouble
• B. being unfair to someone by playing
favorites
In making a decision you rely more
on
• A. Hard facts
• B. Intuition and Feeling
Your boss orders you to do something that will hurt
someone. If you carry out the order, have you actually
done anything wrong?
• A. Yes
• B. No
Which is more important when
determining if an action is right or
wrong?
• A. Whether anyone actually gets hurt
• B. whether a rule, law, commandment,
moral principle is broken
Two Ethical Styles
• The scores on your questionnaire show how strongly you prefer one
or another of two major styles for recognizing and resolving ethical
dilemmas. The higher your "J" score, the more you rely on an "ethic
of justice." The higher your "C" score, the more you prefer an "ethic
of care." (To see how each question was scored, see the answer
key at the bottom of this page.)
• Neither style is better than the other, but they are different. They
may initially seem opposed to one another because they differ so
much on the surface, but they’re actually complementary. In fact, as
the scores on your questionnaire show, you probably already rely on
each style to a greater of lesser degree. (Not that many people end
up with scores of 9/0 or 0/9.) Moreover, the more you can appreciate
both approaches, the better you’ll be able to resolve ethical
dilemmas and to understand and communicate with people who
prefer the other style.
Ethics of Justice
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An "ethic of justice or rights" is based on abstract, impersonal principles, like justice,
fairness, equality or authority. People who prefer this style see ethical dilemmas as
involving primarily a conflict of rights that can be solved by the impartial application of
some general principle. The statue "Justice Blindfolded" captures this approach very
well. People with this style tend to place a good deal of weight on moral principles, laws
or policies, which they believe should be applied to all equally. They usually do not like
making exceptions based on special circumstances, and they worry about "setting
precedents."
The advantage of this approach is that it looks at a problem logically and impartially.
People with this style try to be objective and fair, hoping to make a decision according
to some standard that's "higher" than any specific individual's interests. The
disadvantage of this approach is that people who rely on it might lose sight of the
immediate interests of particular individuals. They may unintentionally ride roughshod
over the people around them in favor of some abstract ideal or policy. Carried to an
extreme, people who strongly prefer this style may tolerate human harm in the name of
some principle. Others might think them as inflexible, cold and uncaring. Their
approach can appear to be not simply impartial, but impersonal.
This style is more common of men than women, and of people who define themselves
in more solitary, individualistic terms. It seems to fit with a more legalistic approach to
life that gives allegiance to some external source of authority. This approach can also
go along with a traditional management style that prefers to justify decisions according
to authority, policies or other impersonal standards, like numbers or executive
prerogative.
Ethic of Care
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An "ethic of care or responsibility" is founded on a sense of responsibility to reduce
actual harm or suffering. For these people, moral dilemmas generally involve a conflict
of duties or responsibilities. People with this orientation believe that the focal point of
every ethical dilemma is the specific individuals involved and the particular
circumstances of the case. Solutions, then, must be tailored to the special details of
individual circumstances. Notions of equity, or what is appropriate or "fitting," tend to be
favored by this approach. Making exceptions does not phase these people, and they
tend to feel constrained by policies that are supposed to be enforced without exception.
The advantage of this approach is that it is responsive to immediate suffering and
harm. This approach is flexible, caring and subjective--appropriately so. It can respond
quickly to changing circumstances and is not preoccupied with the idea of setting
precedents. The bad news, however, is that by focusing so much on circumstances,
people with this orientation can lose sight of the forest for the trees. Their reliance on
subjective, "gut" response can limit their appreciation of other factors. When carried to
an extreme, this style can produce decisions that seem not simply subjective, but
arbitrary.
This style is more common of women than men, and of people who define themselves
primarily in terms of their relationships with other people. It seems to fit with a more
situational approach to life. This orientation seems related to a management style that
is sensitive to the consequences of decisions on the individuals involved, that
considers consensus-building to be very important, and that emphasizes having people
do things as a result of personal "buy-in" rather than simply following orders.
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ANSWER KEY:
1) HURTING FEELINGS (C)/ TELLING LIE (J)
2) MAKE EXCEPTIONS (J)/ APPLY RULES (C)
3) UNMERCIFUL (C)/ UNFAIR (J)
4) STEALING (J)/ BREAKING PROMISE (C)
5) JUST (J)/ SYMPATHETIC (C)
6) NOT HELPING (C)/ PLAYING FAVORITES (J)
7) FACTS (J)/ FEELINGS (C)
8) YES (C)/ NO (J)
9) HURT (C)/ RULE (J)